Dolphins Marc Colombo must solve mystery of how to block DeMarcus Ware

Dallas pass rusher DeMarcus Ware has history with Marc Colombo, his former Cowboys teammate

November 22, 2011|By Omar Kelly, Sun Sentinel

DAVIE — DeMarcus Ware is the premier pass rusher in the NFL, the crème de la crème of quarterback hunters, and has been for a few years now.

The Dallas Cowboys Pro Bowler has become so dominant even the elites at his position enjoy watching him work.

"The best rusher in the league right now," said Jason Taylor, the NFL's active sacks leader, who is one sack from tying John Randle and Richard Dent for sixth all-time with 137.5 in his career. "It's amazing watching [Ware] play."

Marc Colombo is the resident weak link of the Dolphins' offensive line. The Dolphins have had to protect this Cowboys castoff most of the season, putting a tight end on the right side routinely, and often rolling protections his way.

At some point during Thursday's Thanksgiving Day game, Dallas' force of nature and Miami's resident turnstile will reunite.

"I'm having a lot of opportunities to get to the quarterback," said Ware, who leads the NFL with 14 sacks. "Over the years you get better at your craft and you figure out [stuff]. You get smarter at studying film and [offensive] tackles, and how to get your game ready for them."

Unfortunately for the Dolphins, Ware has more than film on Colombo, who, according to ProFootballFocus.com, has allowed four sacks and 24 quarterback pressures (tied for eighth most in the NFL) in 10 games.

Considering they spent five years together with the Cowboys, practicing against one another as starters, Ware is very familiar with Colombo's strengths (his forceful run blocking) and his shortcomings (his footwork on pass protection).

"He's always a fundamentally sound guy," Ware said of Colombo, a 10-year veteran. "He's been in the league for a little while so he knows all the tricks of the trade."

Colombo was released this past offseason by the Cowboys after allowing 10 sacks in 2010. Dallas felt they needed an upgrade and used the ninth overall pick in the 2011 draft to select Tyron Smith.

Colombo latched on with the Dolphins during the first week of training camp, receiving a one-year contract that pays him $2 million.

Because he had history with coach Tony Sparano, who served as his position coach for three seasons in Dallas, the Dolphins immediately created a starting spot for Colombo, who doesn't talk to the media.

Vernon Carey, who has started at tackle for the Dolphins since 2005, was moved over one spot to right guard and the Dolphins haven't considered moving him back despite the fact Colombo has struggled most of this season in pass protection. He's rated by ProFootballFocus.com as the NFL's 66th-best offensive tackle, which means he's not only behind every other NFL starter, but three fill-ins.

Ware is rated the No. 1 outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme, ahead of Green Bay's Clay Matthews Jr., the Dolphins' Cameron Wake and Pittsburgh's James Harrison, in that order.

According to Sparano, Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan is moving Ware around effectively, preventing teams from getting a bead on where he's coming from.

Sparano pointed out the most pressure is going to be on rookie center Mike Pouncey to identify where the pass rushing pressure is coming from and call out the right protections.

"Sometimes he's inside, sometimes he's to the left, sometimes he's on the right. ... He's a good-enough player he can line up at safety. He's an outstanding player," Sparano said of Ware, who only had two games this season where he didn't record at least one sack.

"It's funny because DeMarcus was always the type of player that, as a line coach, I was always amazed the guy would come out of the game and people always [view] him as a pass rusher, but he would come out of the game and have 12 tackles. And it's like how the hell is he making 12 tackles," Sparano continued. "The guy makes plays from one sideline to the other and you run away from him and he'll chase you down."